Gods of Death
by Dueling Fire Demon
Summary: Hiei dies but instead of going to the Spirit World he ends up in the Soul Society leaving questions to be answered: Is Hiei's killer really insane? What secrets are hidden in the past of the Spirit World and Soul Society? and many more. DROPPED
1. Prologe

"We stand in awe before that which cannot be seen, and we respect with every fiber that which we cannot explain" (Bleach English Dub Episode 1, Rukia Kuchiki).


	2. The Tragic End, The Great Beginning

Date: N/A

Time: 6:00PM

Location: Creepy cave on outskirts of Karakura Town

People involved: Yusuke, Kuwabara, Kurama, Hiei, Yukina

The long winding cave seemed to go on for miles. Team Urameshi continued onward following the two bickering hotheads of the group. One relied on "the power of love and the red string of fate" while the other relied on the oversized jagan eye he had in the middle of his forehead. It was hard for the other two to tell which one to follow, with all the fighting keeping calm was not the easiest to do.

"It's this way!"

"And how are you so sure baka?"

"Shut up you runt! I know because the red string of fate connects Yukina and me! Nothing will separate us ever!"

Hiei gave a low almost in audible growl, "Fine, while you play your silly game and get yourself lost and or dead, I'll find her myself," Hiei walked off but did not get far before a loud shriek rang through the cave.

"This way!" they all said and ran off toward the scream.

They ran as fast as they could, Hiei getting there the fastest. As Yusuke, Kurama, and Kuwabara reached the location poor Yukina was being held, a flash of light blinded them as another scream ripped through the cave, one that sounded as if it could wake the dead. But this time it was not Yukina's voice, but that of Hiei. The light faded reveling Hiei, barely standing and with a giant hole in his stomach. He would not last much longer before he fell to his knees and his eyes rolled to the back of his head and fell the rest of the way down. The demon that started it all laughed like an insane clown.

"That's it pal!" Yusuke screamed as he charged the demon that murdered his friend. "You're gonna pay you son of a bitch!" Yusuke raised his fist and slammed it into the side of the demons face. The demon continued to laugh. "You're not affected by this?" Yusuke asked. He was quite puzzled. The demon took a punch square in the face with enough force to break bones and he was still laughing.

"Of course I'm not affected. I am a Death God! A Shinigami!" the demon shouted. "You don't stand a chance against me! Soon I will stand at the top! As the one and only Death God!" the demon laughed manically before he vanished without a trace.

"… Well I'm confused!" Yusuke shouted, throwing his hands in the air, "At least this job is over right?"

"Not alright," Kurama pointed out a he checked Hiei for any vital signs of life. "Hiei's pulse is faded, and he is not breathing. His body is still warm, but it won't be long before it is cold."

"So…" Kuwabara asked.

"So, Hiei is dead… he's gone." Yusuke answered. Silence filled the room and the anger that had once radiated through everyone was replaced with remorse and sorrow.

Hiei looked at his friends then back at his body. He could not believe how stupid he was to be beat by some lunatic who was calling himself a god. It was not the way he would have wanted to go. He would have preferred something like when he fought Shigure. However what's done is done all he could was move on.

"I kept my word." Hiei solemnly said as he left the cave in wait for someone to find him.

Hiei looked no different than he did when he died, only without a hole in his stomach and the fact there was a chain coming out of his chest. Yusuke had talked about his time being dead and a chain in his chest was not something brought up. He started to wonder if there were other ways to crossover into the afterlife, however he let this thought slip when he heard a loud wailing sound coming from behind him. Hiei turned to come face to face with a monster wearing a white mask. His eyes widened and he leaped away.

"So you want to take me on, well, then Fist of the Mortal Flame!" Hiei tried to use his abilities but to no avail. "Damn it!" Hiei was sure the creature was going to fight but right before his eyes it was sliced in two by someone with an Afro.

"Those hollows don't stand a chance against me! Zennoske Kuru-"

"Who the hell are you?" Hiei questioned.

"OH! A soul! Well, in that case here!" the man raised his sword in the air and stormed over to Hiei before slamming it hard on his forehead where his jagan eye is.

"OW! What the hell?" Hiei was wondering if he should knock that guys lights out when he just disappeared into thin air.

Team Urameshi mourned their fallen comrade, they tried to think and remember good things about Hiei. But there was little to say. He was a good fighter, honorable and loyal, but that was about it. It was then they realized: they barely knew him at all.

Time Skip: 1 month

Location: 64th North Rukongai District

With: Hiei

Life was completely different being dead. After meeting the strange soul reaper Hiei found himself trapped in the Rukongai, as the locals called it. There was not much to do there, everyone was pretty poor and the city was full of crime and pests. Hiei chose to distance himself from everyone, choosing to take care of himself over anyone else. He lived in a multi story complex filled with many people and children like everyone else. At night, sometimes wanderers came in to rest. The other residents did not mind sharing their space for they knew these travelers carried stories of what life was like outside of their district and possibly even stories of the Seireitei.

Hiei had spent one month stuck in the Rukongai and he hated it. He listened to all the stories of the other people he lived with and the many travelers that passed through and had learned from them about the soul society and soul reapers. However he found the idea of soul reapers too much like the bubbly idiotic ferry girl that hung around Yusuke. Yet one traveler nicknamed Rat said otherwise.

"When it comes to soul reapers and ferry girls listen here: soul reapers are better." He said one night. "They fight and hold no grudge against the Spirit World for the past conflicts between our worlds. The Spirit World does however. I like the soul reapers, that I do, they may not be good and sharing the wealth, but they are still good." Rat smiled and looked over his shoulder toward Hiei. "And you, dear boy, what is your name?" Rat inquired. Hiei glanced back and answered without a single emotion. "Well then Hiei, why not you become a soul reaper? My eyes may not be what they once were, but I can see reiryoku as clear as an un-muddy lake,"

Hiei turned fully to face Rat, his eyes wide with surprise and he grunted and looked back out the window, "And why would I want to prance around saving souls? Besides it reminds me too much of a girl I hate," Hiei answered as thoughts of Botan's idiocy filled his head.

Rat laughed. "Oh, come now Hiei, that is such a childish thing to say! Why do you hate her?" Hiei did not answer and Rat continued, "I know more about life and love than anyone in this room and I'd say you're in love!" Rat burst out laughing and others joined in. "Either way, being a soul reaper isn't all about the souls, it is also about beating hollows. Although in a way this is about souls, the hollows are hard to beat, soul reapers need to fight them. I heard you saw a hollow during your time as a spirit in the World of the Living correct?" Hiei stared back for a second before looking away, Rat smiled at his reaction, "Think about it Hiei, as far as I know: it is the only way to escape this place,"

* * *

Introducing the return of DFD! New and Improved! this is the story i am currently working on. i have not started the revision for my other stories yet (mostly because i want to finish this with all my new ideas. Because i have not done this for a while please, REVIEW!

some of you that read fanfiction do not review! i admit sometimes i don't review, like when the story is completed, but please, this is a work in progress so please tell me how i am doing.

-DFD


	3. The Ten Year Gap

Chapter 2

Time Skip: 1 month

Location: Spirit World

With: Yusuke, Kuwabara, Kurama, Botan, Koenma, Yukina

With Hiei gone, Team Urameshi lost a valuable asset. The team was unable to win major battles, the new strategies were unsuccessful and everyone was down on themselves. Koenma called the team in to find a decent replacement for Hiei. However the team was not happy with anyone. It was hard finding someone like Hiei.

"We need a new replacement," Koenma argued.

"We need Hiei!" Yusuke shouted, "You know damn well why we need Hiei too! He is the only one I will let on this team and everyone agrees! Right?" Everyone else in the room nodded. "So pacifier breath, pull out that wired egg thing and give it straight to where ever the little guy went and hatch him a new body!" Koenma frowned and muttered under his breath, "What was that?"

"I can't do that Yusuke. Despite my being a god, there are some things I cannot do. Bringing Hiei back is one of them. Not because I don't want to but because he has already passed on and I have no say." A long silence filled the room and all eyes slowly focused on the ground.

"So Mister Hiei is… is… there is no way to bring him back?" Yukina's eyes filled with tears and Koenma nodded, "He was such a nice man too," Her tears started to fall and solidify as they fell from her eyes and clanked onto the ground.

Time Skip: 10 years

Location: Shinoreijutsuin (AKA Shinigami Academy)

With: Hiei

After being in the Rukongai for two months, Hiei had had enough. He entered the Soul Reaper Academy the first chance he got and studied harder than ever to get in. to his surprise he managed a place in the advanced class. Hiei still preferred to distance himself from everyone and to just work hard. He had never really had schooling so it was hard work to do, however he refused to go back to the Rukongai even if that meant he had to become a soul reaper. Hiei spent most of his time training and studying. He needed to work much harder when it came to Kido and the mastery of the Zanpakuto but he still managed and was able to graduate in four years rather than the basic six years most students took.

Upon graduating, which was about 6 years prior to the betrayal of Capitan Aizen, Captain Ichimaru, and Captain Tosen, Hiei was assigned to the 7th seat of the 11th division. However he was soon transferred to the 9th division where he was the 5th seat for two years before getting promoted to the 3rd seat of his division. 3 years later Aizen reviled himself to the Soul Society and left with his accomplices. Not long after, Head Capitan Genryūsai Shigekuni Yamamoto gave orders for Captain Shunsui Kyoraku to take Hiei and three other seated officers to Sarayashiki where hollows were popping up and arrancars were opening a Garganta.

* * *

Short chapter, i know, but this is mostly filler and really just says what happens in the 10 year gap i left in the story, but trust me: the next chapter will be better and longer because we finally get some action!

-DFD


	4. The New Hiei

Chapter 3

Location: Sarayashiki (Present)

With: Hiei

Nostalgia was the emotion that filled Hiei who had all but forgotten his old friends. Yet being back in the same city they had all first met made him sad to remember. It had been ten years since he had died and seen his sister and friends. He started to miss them terribly and a small part of him hoped to see them again soon.

Captain Kyoraku had given orders to spread out and keep watch for hollows and arrancars. He also told them to keep away from any demons that passed through, saying they were the responsibility of the Spirit World. However, that only made Hiei wonder why he ended up going to the Soul Society in the first place. With the orders given, the team moved out in different directions. Hiei went to the park where he always was when he was alive. He was almost there when he sensed the reiatsu of an arrancar at the park along with the familiar energy of Yusuke, Kuwabara, and Kurama. His eyes widened as his secret wish as granted, although not in the way he wanted it to, he dashed off as fast as his shunpo could carry him and got there just in time save them from a cero.

The arrancar stood back a few feet from Yusuke who was the only one still standing, as the others were badly hurt.

"What ya gonna do now? Go on and kill me you freaky… thing…" Yusuke shouted as he closed his eyes anticipating the blow. The arrancar laughed and released the cero that burned bright blue. But the immense pain Yusuke expected never came. He slowly opened his eyes to see Hiei facing the arrancar, sword drawn and poised to kill. "I-I must be hallucinating!"

"I don't think you are, Urameshi…" Kuwabara answered, his mouth open wide, and eyes not blinking making him look like a dumb fish, "I see him too… and so does Kurama…"

"This is impossible though I mean-"

"None of you are dreaming…" Hiei finally answered, "I really am here," His eyes still on the arrancar he was facing, "Now that that is out of the way, Mister Hollow allow me to introduce myself: I am the 3rd seat of the 6th division, the name's Hiei, and I'm… gonna kill you," Hiei's eyes were glaring with death written all over his expression. The arrancar chuckled and smiled.

"A Soul Reaper… nice, I am the twenty-third arrancar. My name… don't really like it so just call me by my number." Hiei smiled.

"Well that's good. You're not an espada so I don't have much to worry about," Twenty-Three glared and the fight began. Neither one releasing their zanpakuto and both fighting with all they have.

Hiei lunged to make a stab and just narrowly missed a blow to the face. But this left him wide open and the arrancar did not hesitate to take it, filling his fist with reiryoku he slammed his fist straight into Hiei's jaw, knocking him a couple of feet away. Hiei's head was bleeding slightly and he spit out two of his molars. Without warning, Hiei vanished leaving the arrancar wide-eyed and looking about. But to no avail as he reappeared and took aim.

"Hodo 33 Sokatsui!" Twenty-Three was hit point blank in his back and went flying across the park and landing in the nearby pond. Hiei smirked and headed over to the pond. The arrancar was under the water so it was hard to tell whether he was dead or alive. But the answer was clear as a cero popped out of the water, hitting Hiei in the gut.

"You soul reapers stand no chance against arrancars!" Twenty-Three shouted.

"Too bad for you," Hiei replied, "I haven't even started getting serious," Hiei raised his sword horizontally and glared at the arrancar, "Blacken the sky…" Hiei's zanpakuto glowed a black color with a white outline as dust swirled around him and his sword split in two surrounded by a puff of black smoke. "Zetsubo no Kage," (_"Shadow of Despair"_)

As the dust cleared, his zanpakuto was reviled. Two black oversized katana like twin sai with chains on the ends. It was breath taking to see and they looked heavy, but Hiei was twirling one around his finger by its chain like it was a cheap key chain. Hiei smirked because he knew everyone was staring at his zanpakuto. "Zetsubo no Kage…" Hiei said with a smirk as he caught the blade he was twirling by its hilt, "This is my zanpakuto. And this is its ability." The one he held in his right hand glowed black as he sliced the air, releasing a black wave of energy that twisted around his opponent, binding his arms to his side making him unable to escape as Hiei launched another wave, this time engulfing the arrancar, and then disappearing, leaving nothing left of Twenty-Three, not even ash.

Yusuke, Kurama and Kuwabara stood in awe at their old friend as he stood facing them while at the same time twirling his zanpakuto around his finger again. Hiei did not look any different than when he died, the only difference was they way he dressed. He wore a black kimono with a sleeveless kosode and had his hands wrapped in white bandages that went up to his elbow. He still wore a white bandanna over where his jagan eye was but his right arm did not have the dragon tattoo that contained the darkness flame he once possessed.

Not one of the boys spoke; neither knew what to say about what they were looking at. Hiei back from the dead was not something to easily accept, especially when they saw him die. Hiei looked at them with a bored look in his eye. His "friends" were looking at him like he was a freak.

"Well, seeing as how no one as anything to say to me, I'll just get going," Hiei said as he let his zanpakuto return to its sealed form and then lazily rest its dull side along his shoulder as he started walking away.

"Wait!" Kurama called, "how are you here? You're dead! The only way this could happen is if there was a breach in the inter-dimensional rift that would thereby allow ghosts to travel from one dimension to another. Or if you are a Hiei from another reality, one where you did not get killed," Kurama pointed out. Hiei gave him a skeptical look that clearly disproved Kurama's theory.

"Or I am dead but can go to and from the World of the Living because it is my job," Hiei explained. His friends looked even more confused than before. Hiei sighed and shook his head before pointing a finger at himself, "I'm a soul reaper. It's my job to come to and from the World of the Living, if you ask Koenma he'll give you a really biased look at soul reapers, so don't," the group still looked confused and Hiei gave up on explaining and started leaving again.

"Wait!" Kurama called again. Hiei stopped but did not look back this time, "Aren't you going to see the others? I bet Yukina would be happy to see you," Kurama pointed out. Hiei turned his head slightly to look back and smiled slightly.

"Yeah, I guess I will. Besides, why else would I volunteer to go on this mission? Besides I was already planning on seeing my sister while I'm here," Yusuke and Kurama exchanged wide-eyed stares as Hiei smirked then vanished.

It was surprising for them; Hiei had openly called Yukina his sister, which was completely unexpected and disturbing for Kuwabara who obviously did not know the relations. However none of that mattered at the moment. Hiei was back and maybe he could help them with the teams' next mission: defeating the white-masked demons.


	5. The History

Chapter 4

Location: Genkai's Temple

With: Yusuke, Kurama, Kuwabara, Yukina, Botan, Koenma

Not long after witnessing the fight between Hiei and the arrancar, Yusuke, Kuwabara and Kurama headed to the temple to tell the others the great news: Hiei was back. Yusuke and Kuwabara tried to explain in detail the fight they saw and how Hiei killed the arrancar while they could not. However, Yusuke and Kuwabara did not do a good job at this, "And then he was all… BOOM, KABOOM, BOOM, BOOM! And Hiei was all, KABAM, BAM, BAM, BAM, BAM! And we were all WTF!" The rest of the group stared and said nothing. Koenma was surprised by all the information he was given, that being of Hiei's grand return. How could he come back? It was impossible.

"Yusuke, not for nothing but this explains nothing," Koenma pointed out.

"Sures hell it does!" Yusuke shouted as he pointed an acusing finger at the prince, and slaming one foot down hard on the coffee table in front of him, "It proves you can never leave a god to deal with dead people coming back! The dead guy has to do it himself!"

"Although this does leave many questions Yusuke," Kurama said from the chair he was sitting in, "Questions like how he did come back, he said it was his job, however I've never known Hiei to be one to even consider having a job," Kurama stood and started pacing.

"Yeah, that sounds nothing like the Hiei we knew, the Hiei we knew was a real prick, who hated everything and everyone. Not to mention I doubt he has a sister like he said before disappearing like that…" Kuwabara joined Kurama in pacing, but stopped abruptly and snapped his fingers, "I got it! That guy wasn't Hiei! No, it was his evil twin brother sent here by the Daleks of another reality where he is the ruling overlord of all and the destroyer of worlds! And he came here to kill us for our pasta!"

"Kuwabara…" Kurama walked over to him and patted his shoulder, "I thank you for trying but… do us a favor and lay off the comic books and Doctor Who please," Kuwabara sighed and went to take his seat again. "Now, Hiei did say something about not asking you Koenma, so please, tell us what you know about soul reapers,"

Koenma's eyes widened as sweat formed on his brow. He knew about soul reapers. Most anyone knew who was in spirit world. Koenma cleared his throat and looked up at the others and turning into his teenage form. "Soul reapers are the worst spirits to meet. They kill souls that they say are evil. The soul reapers call these souls hollows and use their weapons called zanpakuto to kill them. These are swords that have abilities based on their master's soul. The soul reapers also take care of normal souls too; they send them to a place called the Soul Society where they live in districts called the Rukongai. The Rukongai is poor compared to the center of the Soul Society where the noble families and soul reapers live luxurious lives." Koenma frowned and showed utter distaste of the soul reapers, "I hate soul reapers. The Spirit World and Soul Society have a long history together. We have never really agreed on anything, and we had had many wars with them. Each and every time the Spirit World was loosing and yet, every time a cease-fire was called and peace was restored. However, the last time there was a war, a cease-fire was not called, instead the leaders of both worlds were called together by an unknown soul reaper who called for total peace. For 66 days the leaders met and soon came to an agreement, much to my father's protest. The agreement was total peace and the division of souls, meaning the soul reapers got complete control over certain souls such as hollows and regular souls and the Spirit World got the rest of the souls and control over part of demon world and say in what demons can and can not do. This agreement was called the Treaty of Eternal Peace,"

Koenma stared at his friends again and no one knew what to say, Kurama was the first to speak, "how does the division of souls work?"

Koenma sighed, "From birth, souls are destined to either go to the soul society or the Spirit World when they die, there is a record on both sides to be sure there will be no errors,"

Kurama rested his hand on his chin in thought, "Hiei said he was a soul reaper, I can not tell if this is a bad thing," Koenma glared at him and clenched his teeth.

"Of course it is a bad thing! Soul reapers are evil! They do no good for souls, putting them in an over populated city where the military and government feast while everyone else starves! Soul reapers kill these hollow souls when all they need is compaction! They call them souls that have lost their heart from neglect, so in truth it is the soul reapers fault for not having them pass over in the first place! That does not make sense why the soul has to pay for the mistakes of the beings that should have saved them!" Koenma hated soul reapers with all his heart. He did not know any soul reapers, but knows about them from his father who told him to be weary of the soul reapers.

Location: Old abandoned warehouse on Sarayashiki Piers

With: Hiei, lieutenant Renji Abarai, lieutenant Shuhei Hisagi, 3rd Seat Ikkaku Madarame and Captain Shunsui Kyoraku.

The piers were just as they were the last time Hiei was there: empty. No one really came there and all that was there were boxes and crates of items shipped in over seas. It was the best place for a group of soul reapers to meet and rest up for their fights. By the time Hiei got there, his allies were already finished with their fights and knew why Hiei was the last one in: he was playing around with the arrancar. He took his time explaining the battle to Captain Kyoraku, and the others: Renji Abarai, Shuhei Hisagi, and Ikkaku Madarame, and by the time he finished he concluded that the arrancars were stronger than previously thought.

"Captain Kyoraku, there is something else you should know," Hiei said, changing the topic from his fight, "Spirit World had sent its own team out to investigate the arrancars. As we know: Spirit World should be able tell the difference between the energy of soul reapers and hollows, so…" He paused, closing his eyes to try to put what he thought in the simplest way possible, "I assume, Koenma is intentionally violating the Treaty of Eternal Peace," the captain's eyes widened as he rested his hand on his sakkat.

"Are you sure about that assumption? How do you know they worked for Spirit World?" Kyoraku asked.

"I knew them while I was alive. They worked for Spirit World the last time I saw them, and I assume they still do now other wise I doubt they would get involved unless the arrancar I fought did something to them personally," Hiei explained.

Kyoraku sighed and got up from the box he was sitting on and started rubbing the back of his neck, "Well then, if we are to make that assumption, we might as well get proof of it before we make it official. As we know, if it is believed one side is violating the treaty, proof is needed and then a representative is needed to officially call for an agreed term of temporary punishment. For us we need a representative of Central 46 or one of the noble houses is needed to bring this to Enma, and because the 46 possible representatives of Central 46 are all still dead, our best bet is Captain Kuchiki who is currently busy on another task," The captain looked just a little displeased at the bad luck he seemed to be having, but pushed that aside and smiled, "So Hiei when'll you be able to visit them again? And can we come along too?"

* * *

dun, dun, dun,

so the conflict between Spirit World and the Soul Society is reveled!

**REMINDER: REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW!**


	6. The Reunion And Fierce Fight

Chapter 5

Time Skip: One day

Location: On the way to Genkai's Temple

With: Hiei

Hiei kept his word to come and visit. He was a little nervous about seeing everyone again on social terms, but he did really miss them although he would never admit it out loud. He was taking a much slower pace than needed, but he really did need to adjust to his gigai, having been so long since he needed to use one. Walking down the sidewalk to the bus stop he was going to take made him feel like a human. He did not mind humans as much anymore, although he still did see them as mostly useless creatures.

The bus ride was long, so long in fact he eventually got tired of sitting and just got off miles before the temple and just ousted to running, knowing that despite being in a gigai and the inability to use the shunpo over long distances, he could still outrun a bus because of his natural speed that had somewhat been reduced upon death. Hiei ran the rest of the way to the temple and managed to get there just before lunch.

Hiei stopped himself from entering, just taking a quick look in the window of the temple. His sister was busy cooking lunch and laughing along with the others when something funny was happening, Yusuke was laughing at Kuwabarra who had got on one knee and started singing (badly) to Yukina about how amazing she was at cooking. Botan, Shizuru and Keiko had gathered together to talk about, what Hiei assumed, were girl things that no one needed to hear. As for Koenma, he was grouching on the same couch as Kurama who was busy reading a book.

It had been so long for Hiei since he saw them all and almost felt the need to cry, but he pushed the thought away and rubbed his eyes that started to cry and looked about himself. Noticing a window he did what he always did when entering a house: leap through the window. No one seemed to notice his entry, probably because he entered through a back window, but he did not care. He just smirked and waited to but into a conversation.

"I'm honestly still amazed!" Yusuke shouted, "Hiei may be a soul reaper but… after what I saw I'd say they're pretty cool!" Koenma grumbled.

"Soul reapers are evil, and cruel, and monstrous creatures!" He shouted at the top of his lungs.

"Well, that idea is really no different than you think of most demons am I right?" Hiei asked, smirking when everyone fell silent and turned to face him. Yusuke was smiling like an idiot; Kurama gave a small pleased smile; and the others just looked either shocked, or freaked out. Hiei stared walking toward them at a slow pace and continued, "I know very well the story Koenma told you about the Soul Society and the Spirit World and you should know: it is not entirely true, and the Spirit World always did start the conflicts, trying to take full control over souls when they know that will leave an imbalance in 'good souls' and hollows. And also: unlike the Spirit World: we soul reapers hold no grudge, we just do our jobs and be sure the Spirit World doesn't try to violate the Treaty of Eternal Peace… again," Hiei stared blankly at the others who were too stunned to talk and Hiei really did not know what else to say to them after ten years.

Yukina took the opportunity to step forward. Silent and with her head bowed, refusing to meet his eyes, she started talking, "It's… it's good to see you again… Hiei…" She said quietly, her hands fiddling with each other nervously, "I… I never really got the chance to thank you for… saving me all those years ago… so thank you, Hiei." Yukina's eyes watered slightly and her hands were still unable to stop moving. Hiei could not stand to see his sister start crying and acting so nervous around him so much so he wrapped his arms around her for comfort. She was taken aback by his actions but found an odd sense of peace and protection with him.

Once Yukina was calm, Hiei reluctantly let go and smiled as he looked back at the others. Yusuke smiled as wide as his lips would allow and marched over to Hiei slinging an arm around his shoulders, "You little softy!" Yusuke shouted, "I thought you hated hugs!" Hiei growled slightly, opening his mouth to shoot back something cocky but stops himself as Kurama walks over to him.

"Hiei, it has been ten years since we last saw each other. But to me something about you is different," Kurama began, "You seem changed, you're taller than you were, and much more mature even." Kurama smiled coming to a stop right in front of him, "I have missed you, Hiei, we all have. And now perhaps you should tell us what happened to you to make these changes," He suggested.

Hiei sighed and smiled, "Only if you fill me in on what happened here without me around to beat sense into anyone," Everyone smiled and started gathering around to hear the story.

Hiei told them everything, the Rukongai, the academy, the soul reapers; which proved Koenma was being biased about soul reapers. He told them about the unfortunate betrayal of his captain, along with Aizen and Ichimaru. The rest of the team talked about how impossible things were without him around. They talked about another dark tournament they fought in and how they needed two extra fighters to replace Genkai and Hiei. Inevitably they lost the tournament but it was just by luck the demon they were after was killed in the semi-finals.

After catching up on lost time, they just started talking, laughing and remembering 'the good old days' Hiei smiled and enjoyed time with his old friends, which was so much different than what he did before he died. He remembered watching Kuwabara try to 'woo' his sister and how many times everyone except Hiei laughed at him for his cheep antics. He remembered all the times Kuwabara 'accidentally' fell or got hurt trying to 'woo' Yukina because of him and how Hiei did not laugh once through out any of these moments.

"Hiei, what happened to you?" Yusuke asked, "Before you were nothing but a little prick who shoved happiness and kindness in every ones faces, and now you're actually enjoying yourself," Hiei smirked.

"I died. But the truth is: Death is not really the end, just… a whole new beginning, a new life so to speak," Hiei smiled upon remembering what Captain Tosen told him when he first joined the squad. Hiei's smile vanished as he sensed a presence. Hiei quickly got to his feet, ignoring the questions his friends were asking him as he walked out the front door in investigate. Upon leaving the temple, the other trailing behind, Hiei looks up just in time to see a garganta open over the city. Hiei sighs and swallows his gikon, quickly separating him from his gigai, ordering it to stay out of the way. The rest of his friends freak out upon seeing "the two Hieis'" and watch as an arrancar arrived. The arrancar had light blue hair and wore the remains of his hollow mask's jaw on his right cheek. He smiled and glared at Hiei.

"So, who's gonna fight me?" he asked, "Come on, who's gonna fight me?" He asked again upon not hearing a reply. The arrancar grunted then disappeared, before reappearing with his sword drawn attempting to slice Hiei in two. Hiei just barely dodged the attack and drawing his zanpakuto but still unable to avoid injury as the arrancar did in fact leave a gash in his left shoulder. Hiei glared at the arrancar, more than ready to react upon another attack. "So kid, you gonna use your bankai?" the arrancar asked. Hiei's eyes widened "might as well use it. You can't beat me without it; after all I don't expect any soul reaper to be able to beat an espada without one," the espada sighed and shook his head. Using his sonido, the arrancar attacked head on without any hesitation. Hiei was cornered with no way to make any counter attacks or distance himself from the espada. In an attempt to get more space, Hiei tried using bakudo 21, Sekienton, managing enough time to release his zanpakuto's shikai and regain his footing above the ground.

Down below, Hiei's friends looked on in awe as Hiei fought the arrancar. The need to help their friend was over whelming but all of them knew they stood no chance. They knew Hiei was a strong fighter and after seeing Hiei beat the twenty-third arrancar with little effort, the fact he was loosing this fight showed a huge power difference between the two arrancars.

"Shit man! Hiei needs help!" Yusuke shouted as he started running to where the fight was. However he did not make it very far as Hiei's gigai grabbed Yusuke by the arm, holding him by the wrist and shoulder, before pushing Yusuke's shoulder to the ground, pinning him in place, "What the hell is your problem?" Yusuke raged, "Our friend needs us so you better let me go and-"

"And what? Get yourself killed?" Hiei's gigai replied, "I doubt my master will appreciate me letting his weak, and pathetic friends get in the way," the gigai did not move from his spot and kept his eyes focused on the fight, "You see, Hiei actually has mastered his zanpakuto completely. He just doesn't like people knowing about it, so really, he isn't fighting at all at full strength yet,"

The arrancar laughed manically as he was able to out maneuver Hiei almost every time and still no way to counter the onslaught of attacks. Hiei was bleeding heavily out of the wound in his shoulder and a cut on his wrist was bleeding too much, making the grip on his zanpackuto slippery. The espada smirked and laughed as he used a spinning kick to knock Hiei out of the sky and drop his sword.

"What a shame soul reaper, I was hoping for a decent fight from you," The arrancar walked casually over to Hiei and raised his zanpakuto to rest it on his shoulder, "I'll give you one last chance: use your bankai or I'll kill you!" he shouted. Hiei raised himself to his knees, using his zanpakuto to hold some of his weight as he breathed hard and a little shakey.

"Tell me this: what is your name, espada?" Hiei asked, the espada grunted and gave a questioning look, "If you're going to kill me, I would like to know by whose sword I die,"

"I am Grimmjow Jaegerjaquez, the 6th espada," Hiei smiled at his answer as he shifted more of his weight onto his zanpakuto.

"That's a relief," Hiei said.

"What the hell's that suppose to mean, soul reaper?" Grimmjow questioned.

Hiei smirked and tried to stand up, but failed, as he was tiring, "Well, I'm just glad you aren't the strongest espada, I mean if that were the case, the captains could easily beat you all," Hiei sighed heavily as Grimmjow growled deep in his throat preparing to kill Hiei with one last blow to the head.

"Time to die soul reaper!" Grimmjow shouted as he formed a cero in the palm of his right hand, while his other hand held Hiei by his shihakusho.

With the little time left he had to live, Hiei took one last look around and upon looking out of the corner of his eye, he smirked as another zanpakuto came flying in between Hiei and Grimmjow, severing the espada's left hand and allowing Hiei to fall to the ground and rush to regroup.

"DAMN IT!" Grimmjow bellowed in pain as he clutched his bleeding arm, "Who the fuck did that?" he questioned, looking around himself like a paranoid child, "Who did that, who has to pay?" Without warning, another spinning blade flew right in front of his eyes, Grimmjow followed the blade's path and fell on another soul reaper.

The new soul reaper had short, black hair and three long scars over his right eye. He had a tattooed neutral blue stripe that starts on his left cheek and passed over the bridge of his nose. And under that tattoo, he has the number '69' in bold numbering.

Grimmjow glared at the new soul reaper, who appeared to be a lieutenant, Damn you!" Grimmjow shouted, "Who the hell are you?"

"I am Shuhei Hisagi, lieutenant of the 9th division," Shuhei raised his released zanpakuto and attacked head on, managing to catch Grimmjow off guard. With the espada loosing his footing, Hiei reappeared from behind, and narrowly missed Grimmjow as he dodged, only getting a gash on the back of his injured right arm. Shuhei and Hiei both stood exhausted and weakened from their fights. "Hiei, I want you to use your bankai," Hiei kept his eyes on the espada and shook his head.

"I can't sir, I don't want anyone to know I have a bankai, next thing you know they'll want me to take the captain's exam and I really don't want that," Hiei reasoned, "Besides, if I use it now, it would weaken me more than I am now, I am still working on it," Grimmjow glared at them and waited patiently, almost as if he was still waiting for someone to use their bankai.

"Better listen to the lieutenant, kid!" Grimmjow shouted, "since you won't listen to me when I said you should use your bankai, perhaps you'll listen to him!" Hiei grumbled and swore under his breath before extending his arms out to each of his sides and activating his bankai.

* * *

Sorry about the delay, i really don't think i am all that good at fight scenes and awkward reunions. this is, so far my longest chapter in the story and i plan on making the next one even better and (hopefully) longer

NOTE: Hiei's zanpakuto is MINE i made it up myself and there is more about it in the next chapter (which i have started already)

-DFD


	7. The Fight Continues, Hiei's Bankai!

Chapter 6

Location: Genkai's Temple

With: Hiei + Shuhei Hisagi vs. Grimmjow Jaegerjaquez

"Bankai," The air around Hiei blew violently as a red spiritual pressure illuminated him. His zanpakuto began pulsing as dust and energy spun around Hiei. For several seconds he remained hidden from view, and as the dust cleared, Hiei's bankai was seen for the first time outside of his secret training grounds. "O Hazu Beki, Zetsubo no Kage" (_King of the Shameful, Shadow of Despair_). The new form of Hiei's zanpakuto was nearly twice the size of it's original. It was still a duel blade zanpakuto, with the same sai like quality, however both blades had grown a symmetrical twin on the end of the hilt, which was also longer.

Hiei smirked and in the blink of an eye vanished before reappearing directly in front of Grimmjow, who was not prepared for the strike, but still able to block it just barely. With Grimmjow struggling to hold the sheer weight of Hiei's zanpakuto, Hisagi took the opportunity to attack from behind. However, without either soul reaper's knowledge, another arrancar appeared behind Hisagi and grabbed him by the collar of his shihakusho and tossed him back. As Hisagi crashed into the temple below, Both Hiei and Grimmjow's attention was drawn to the new arrancar that appeared to be there to aid his comrade.

"Ulquiorra," Grimmjow spat in disgust at the new arrancar. The new arrancar appeared like he was crying green tears, and held a depressed, yet focused look. His green eyes were piercing and seemed to look down on everyone. The arrancar's fractured mask was worn on the top of his head like a helmet that covered only the left side of his head. His hollow hole was located at the base of his throat.

Hiei glared at the arrancar, and he stared back, as he released his immense spiritual power. Hiei's eyes widened upon feeling the pressure, it was far stronger than any he had felt emit from an arrancar. He was frozen in place and started to sweat a cold sweat as the arrancar slowly approached Hiei, every step adding more pressure onto the motionless Hiei. Thoughts raced through his head wondering what was going to happen. Was he going to kill him? Capture him? Turn him into dust? He did not know. And as the arrancar reached him, he seemed to have forgotten about his very existence as he walked right past him.

"What do you want, Ulquiorra?" Grimmjow asked as he crossed his arms, "I'm kinda busy so if you don't mind I would like to kill them without your interfering," Ulquiorra's focus switched to Grimmjow, his eyes unchanging.

"Why should I not interfere?" he asked, "from my point of view all I can see is you being beat up by worthless soul reapers. As an espada you should be able to beat them without problem," Grimmjow glared and muttered complaints under his breathe, "We're leaving," he said as a garganta opened, allowing them to leave.

Upon leaving, the pressure retracts and releases Hiei, allowing him to let go of the breath he didn't know he was holding. Hiei slowly returned to the ground, his zampakuto returning to its sealed form, as he went over to the temple to see if Hisagi was alright.

"Lieutenant, what was going on in the city?" Hiei asked as Hisagi pulled himself from the partially collapsed temple.

"The others were all fighting arrancars throughout the town. Problem was, none of them were like any arrancar any of us had seen." Hisagi explained, "Captain Kyoraku has contacted the 12th division to look into the matter, but so far no one has any data that can be of any use,"

Yusuke and the others slowly walked up to Hiei and his 'friend' with confused looks on their faces.

"Umm…" Yusuke began, drawing the attention of the two soul reapers, "Yeah, sorry to interrupt your little business meeting but what the hell was that?" Yusuke asked waving his hands around to where the fight was, "And also what is this thing?" Yusuke asked pointing to Hiei's gigai, which was currently taking a nap under a tree.

Hiei sighed and scratched the back of his neck, "Now isn't the time to be explaining such negligible things, we have bigger problems to deal with," Hiei said, apparently no longer in the easygoing state he was in before "So what do we do now sir?" Hiei asked, turning back to Hisagi.

"We should report back to Captain Kyoraku and see what we can find out based on all our encounters," Hiei nodded and grabbed his gigai by his shirt, dragging him back to the hideout. Hisagi turned to Hiei's friends and with a low bow apologized for the damage, "Don't worry about it though, the damage will come out of the mission budget so everything will be fixed soon," he said before rushing off.

Location: Old abandoned warehouse on Sarayashiki Piers

With: Hiei, lieutenant Renji Abarai, lieutenant Shuhei Hisagi, 3rd Seat Ikkaku Madarame and Captain Shunsui Kyoraku.

As the day was ending and the sun was setting, one by one every one of the soul reapers sent on the mission dragged their exhausted and injured selves into the warehouse. Each soul reaper had encountered a different arrancar, and some of them did not seem like any they had ever seen before.

Captain Kyoraku demanded everyone to describe their battles with the arrancars in detail in order to assess possible leads as to the identity of they new enemy. Hiei described his battle with Grimmjow and assumed that Aizen was directly behind it due to the espada being involved. However, based on what Renji and Ikkaku faced, it appeared as if someone else had a hand in the game as well.

Both Renji and Ikkaku had faced arrancars that introduced themselves as arrancar 4513, and arrancar 1514. As far as the soul reapers knew, arrancars could only be numbered 1-99. To have arrancars with four digits could only mean bad news for the Seireitei. Renji had faced arrancar 4513. The arrancar had no name and did not even look even a little human like the other arrancars. He was tall, and had green skin with long pointed claws on his hands. 4513 also reeked of freshly spilt blood and the rotting flesh of decaying corpses. Hiei's eyes widened upon hearing this. Green skin was not normal for a human, hollow or arrancar; but neither was the sent of blood and flesh… however both were common traits of the low level demons in the Makai.

* * *

sorry for the lack of updates... suffering major writers block when it comes to getting into the plot of the story.

like what it says on my blog and FF profile page: updates will be in random places and really no set place for the next update but i am aiming for 8/21 for the next update if i can

and please, REVIEW! i want to know what you all thing so far and if i can do anything better for the next chapter


	8. The Situations

Chapter 7

Location: Old abandoned warehouse on Sarayashiki Piers

With: Hiei, lieutenant Renji Abarai, lieutenant Shuhei Hisagi, 3rd Seat Ikkaku Madarame and Captain Shunsui Kyoraku.

The realization that demons were turning into arrancars was a major roadblock in the whole mission. Because of the Treaty of Eternal Peace, negotiations would be needed in order to make an alliance with the Spirit World and fight the new arrancars. However, with Koenma, it is a known fact he would not agree to let the soul reapers fight anything with demonic energy, let alone join forces with the soul reapers to save the world.

Captain Kyoraku sent word to the Head Captain and the 12th division of their findings. But with little any of them could do, the Head Captain sent orders to Captain Kuchiki to head out as soon as possible to aid in the negotiations that would take place. In the mean time, both the Head Captain and Captain Kyoraku were on agreement to try and get on good terms with the Spirit Detectives and Prince of Spirit World.

Time Skip: One Day

Location: Genkai's Temple

With: Soul Reapers and Spirit Detectives

Explanations were short and simple upon arriving at the temple. Discussion filled the room with questions such as 'who is doing this?' and 'why?' However neither side had answers as of yet and had utterly no clue as to how the Spirit World would be of any help seeing as how neither could really fight hollows, let alone arrancars. Each soul reaper was especially trained to deal with hollows and knew how to fight them well, but with the detectives it was hard to say. They were young and only one of them really had any sense of strategy when it came to fighting.

To the soul reapers Yusuke seemed to rash to be a leader. Comparing him even to Kenpachi Zaraki seemed wrong. Yusuke was like the 11th division captain in the love of fighting. However Zaraki is a much more capable fighter, he fought with restrictions to keep his reiyoku low therefore causing him to have a way to counter if he needed more power. Yet with Yusuke, he went all out when he fought, using every drop of power he had when he needs it and wins the fights just by luck.

Kuwabara seemed to be just a weak human. There really is no captain to compare him to at all. He seems to be more of the level of a new student at the academy than a soul reaper at all. He could fight, but his motivation is poor and lacks in every element of the word 'fight.' Kuwabara fights for fun and in the hopes of beating Yusuke and winning the heart of the ever-clueless Yukina. He lacks control over his power (if it can even be called that) and his impatient fighting style clearly shows he has really no true discipline.

Kurama seems to be the only one with strategy, however he lacks in the capability to physically fight. He is weaker than his comrades in regards to physical strength seeing as he is in a human body. However if he was to regress back into Yoko Kurama he could pose as an asset to the task at hand. But it is known far to well he will never become Yoko again, as he vowed in the Makai Tournament. Kurama's skill as a fighter relies mostly on cunning. His ability to think out weighs the need to use force. He could easily think of a plan that would work for him and a team that focuses on using the strengths and guarding the weakness. In that regard he has the same ability of the 2nd division captain, Soifon, who heads the Onmitsukido.

Despite all this though, the lack of ability to perform against the new threat is evident. Work needs to be done to better the skills of the soul reapers as well as those of the detectives as well.

With the information given, it was deemed important to train and prepare for the worst. The combination of their power is key to defeating the new arrancar mutts.

"We know Renji and Ikkaku faced these arrancars and they are both high ranking officers…" Captain Kyoraku started, "From what Hiei told me, you're the only ones that have fought demons before and beat 'em,"

"Hell yes we did!" Yusuke shouted as he laughed, "We beat the Toguro Brothers, a rouge spirit detective, and brought peace in the Makai! We're on a roll here!" Yusuke laughed with a big goofy grin on his face that made him look like a little kid at an amusement park.

Hiei glared at Yusuke and sighed, "This is nothing like anything you've ever faced," Hiei explained, "Arrancars are a real problem for the Soul Society, you saw how strong that arrancar the other day was," Thinking back to the fight between Grimmjow and Hiei, it was clear that they were dealing with creatures far more powerful that demons even of the S-Class. It appeared as if not even the powers of Raizen, Mukuro and Yomi combined could beat them.

Yusuke sighed and looked awkwardly at his feet, "So what do we do then?" he asked. The rest of the group looked between each other, no one saying anything because, in truth, neither soul reaper nor detective had any real plan other than wait. But wait for what? For the chance to attack? To defend? For information? Not a single person had any clue what they were truly dealing with. The soul reapers all accused Aizen of committing yet another heinous act against the Soul Society; and the detectives blamed some mad demon or human who wanted some form of conquest or revenge.

Koenma grumbled from his seat on the couch, "We really don't need you soul reapers," He started, "My team can handle this, after all, these are demons we're dealing with after all," Koenma explained casually. Hiei glared at Koenma and grinded his teeth in an attempt to hold back yelling at the prince for being an idiot.

"Not entirely," Captain Kyouraku said as he tipped his sakkat back from over his eyes, "They aren't entirely demon according to what my men say," Kyouraku said as he sat up from his seat on the floor, "and until we know for sure these guys aren't part hollow, we're gonna be involved. However sad news to you, but based on everything we've seen, they are and we're staying," Koenma clenched his fists and pouted like a child, but his eyes softened slightly upon seeing that his efforts at forcing them away was pointless.

After another hour of casual discussion, it was decided that some preparations need to be made and a small evaluation of the detectives' powers in order to have an idea about what weapons they had in their arsenal. Hiei already knew their abilities and decided to just sit outside for a while and relax. His work was stressful, more so now than when Captain Tosen was around. Before things were more relaxed. Being sent out to deal with strong hollows came frequently enough but not so much that he was worn out all the time. He enjoyed seeing the sakura trees bloom in early spring, he didn't know why he liked it, he assumed it is because upon becoming a soul reaper in the spring it was the first time in his life he really felt relaxed. It could also be because he held a great respect for Captain Kuchiki, who had similar ambition to him. Kuchiki protected his sister; Rukia, the same way Hiei protected Yukina. Kuchiki also held an honor code much like his and treasured the principles of loyalty, pride, and obligation in much the same way Hiei did. Nevertheless, those times of relaxation turned into strenuous work hours and painful changes.

Hiei sat on the steps of the porch and relaxed into the calming breeze that gently blew across his face. Botan, the useless ferry girl that has proved time and time again she is only good for healing, hesitantly joined Hiei on the steps. She was still slightly uneasy about seeing Hiei knowing full well he died. As she sat next to him she could not take her eyes off him. She did not stare at him like so many romantic authors make the two main characters stare like, but rather a bewildered and puzzled stare.

To Botan, Hiei was always the bad boy of the group. He was cold, uncaring, arrogant, and cruel. She never really talked to him much, mostly because he scared her. But seeing him now, he did not scare her half as much as before. Botan assumed that he was just a jerk on the outside, but now she knew he was a kind, caring person on the inside. She continued to stare at him and then awkwardly started poking at him, as if seeing that he was real.

"Can I help you with something?" Hiei asked as he turned to the girl that was poking him randomly.

"N-No," she stuttered as she continued poking at him, "So strange…" She said to no one in particular, "Can you actually feel that?" She asked, peering into his eyes.

"Yes, I can," Hiei said as he shifted slightly away from her, "And I have to say it is rather annoying," Hiei added, trying to get her to stop.

"S-Sorry…" Botan blushed and scooted over slightly, "Hiei?" She asked. He looked over at her to acknowledge that she spoke, "How bad will things get?"

Hiei paused and pondered a second before answering. In truth there were many possibilities: If Aizen was involved than he could strike before the Hogyoku opens, which would throw the entire Soul Society off balance. If it were just a crazy demon like they use to face it would be difficult for the soul reapers to get involved. There are so many different scenarios and so many different challenges, to answer he question he could only say, "I don't really know,"

"Oh…" Botan said as she tucked a loose strand of hair behind her ear.

"Why are you talking to me?" Hiei suddenly asked, "I mean, not that it isn't nice, just why? We've never really talked before or anything…"

Botan stared up at him and really had no idea how to answer, "Um… uh, I guess because… I was afraid of you before and now…" Botan blushed and prayed he did not think she liked him romantically, "and now, I see that you're a nice guy and all," Botan smiled and Hiei seemed satisfied with her answer.

* * *

been a while since an update i know, but i now have my plans for the story set until... i'd say about chapter...11? i don't know, they are all just notes with no real set chapter line up. just a list of important events is all.

NOTE: for future chapters i really have no intention of doing a Hiei+Botan thing... maybe slightly, but really nothing major. (the HB thing will have a point in the future... just don't expect a 'Botan and Hiei fall in love blah, blah, blah, thing)


End file.
